The Bulgarian capital opened a new metro station that extends its M2 metro line.
The mayor of Sofia, Yordanka Fandakova, launched the new Vitosha station in the presence of the Bulgarian prime minister, Boyko Borisov.
Метрото от днес стига до Хладилника, новата отсечка е 1,3 км, общата дължина на линиите вече е 40 км @BoykoBorissov pic.twitter.com/EdkKQg4YUM
— Yordanka Fandakova (@FandakovaY) July 20, 2016
The new metro extension runs 1.3 km and took two years to build. It cost €26.4 million – €22 million of which came from EU funds.
‘Sofia’s metro now has over 40 km of underground track with 35 stations,’ said Fandakova. ‘[Thanks to the metro extension] over 20 000 [additional] people will enjoy this ecological and urban transport.
‘A great advantage of the metro is that it will save 75 000 tonnes of harmful emissions annually, which is an important step in our work for a cleaner environment.’
The new station has seven exits, with the accompanying wayfinding information based on a model developed by Bulgarian NGO Save Sofia.
The new system uses numbering for station exits and entrances so that passengers can easily navigate the area by remembering a digit instead of street names.
The new model also introduces internationally recognised symbols that link to the surrounding area and significant sites. All information is bilingual – in Bulgarian and English.
For more information, visit: dnevnik.bg (in Bulgarian).
